Carbohydrate utilization genetic signatures in the species Lactobacillus rhamnosus

What is it about?

Diversity of the species Lactobacillus rhamnosus, commonly found in healthy humans or their diet, is largely unexplored. We investigated the genetic and carbohydrate utilization diversity of 25 L. rhamnosus strains isolated from various environments. They showed that correlation of the carbohydrate use and genotyping can help identify novel bacterial functions and genes. Such genetic markers could be used to accelerate the selection of strains relevant for industrial applications.

Why is it important?

We present here the application of two already in use technologies that, when used together, provide a new way to study bacteria. By applying the correlation of these two methods to bacterial species, we can uncover new functions and find the genes responsible for those functions. The applications span many bacterial functions beyond use of carbohydrates. For instance, pathogen inhibition, immune modulation or production of metabolites could be investigated as well.